Despite being a mere seven kilometres from the centre of Nairobi, this uniquely accessible national park offers a quality quick-fix safari experience.

Nairobi National Park is a true paradox. Despite being situated on the southeastern outskirts of East Africa’s most populous, cosmopolitan and industrialised city, it is a genuinely worthwhile and uncontrived safari destination. Unfenced on two sides, it allows free movement of wildlife from the nearby Athi Plains (though not in and out of the city, for obvious reasons). The absence of elephants means it is not a true Big Five park, but still, it is one of the best places in East Africa for spotting black rhinos and witnessing lion kills. In addition, the 117-square-kilometre sanctuary is home to most other plains wildlife species associated with southern Kenya, including large seasonal herds of wildebeest, zebra and gazelle, as well as lower densities of eland, giraffe and impala.

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Nairobi National Park can be highly rewarding for birdwatchers, with more than 400 species recorded. It is particularly good for ostrich, secretary bird, southern ground-hornbill and other large grassland species such as francolins and bustards.

At the park’s main entrance, a ‘Safari Walk’ offers visitors the opportunity to see several rare charismatic species in large modern enclosures, one of which is the mountain bongo, a massive forest antelope whose range is now restricted to Kenya. It is also a good place to see lions, leopards and black rhinos, which are resident here.

Also of interest is the orphanage run by the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust near the Mbagathi Gate entrance to the park. You can take a tour of this facility and get the opportunity to interact with orphaned elephants that are in the process of being hand-reared for release into the wild.